Porsche Penske Motorsport Locks Out Third Row in Detroit Qualifying
- Porsche Blog
- 1 day ago
- 3 min read
Porsche Penske Motorsport secured the third row of the grid for the upcoming 100-minute race on the challenging Detroit street circuit. Matt Campbell qualified fifth, with Nick Tandy close behind in sixth, showcasing the team's strong performance despite the demanding conditions. The race promises strategic battles on the tight urban track.
Porsche Penske Motorsport's Qualifying Performance
Porsche Penske Motorsport demonstrated a solid qualifying effort in Detroit, with both factory Porsche 963 racing cars consistently appearing in the top third of the timesheets. Matt Campbell, sharing the No. 6 Porsche 963 with Mathieu Jaminet, secured the fifth grid position. Nick Tandy, alongside reigning IMSA champion Felipe Nasr in the No. 7 Porsche 963, qualified sixth. Despite a last-minute flying lap attempt, Tandy, known as "Mr. 24 Hours" for his endurance race victories, maintained his position.
Matt Campbell qualified fifth (1:06.496 minutes).
Nick Tandy qualified sixth (1:06.626 minutes).
The team focused on avoiding mistakes on the challenging street circuit.
Strategic Outlook for the Race
Jonathan Diuguid, Executive Director of Porsche Penske Motorsport, acknowledged that while the team might be slightly off the pace over a single lap, their performance in longer runs during practice sessions suggests a stronger race pace. The team is optimistic about leveraging strategy to gain an advantage in the 100-minute sprint race. Drivers expressed confidence in the car's setup and the team's ability to make further improvements.
Customer Team and GTD-Pro Class Challenges
Gianmaria Bruni, driving the JDC-Miller MotorSports Porsche 963, qualified tenth. The customer team is working to fine-tune their hybrid prototype's setup before the race. In the GTD-Pro class, the AO Racing 911 GT3 R, affectionately known as "Roxy," faced misfortune. A poorly timed red flag during qualifying, triggered by another car's off-track excursion, prevented Klaus Bachler and Laurin Heinrich from improving their lap times, relegating them to eighth on the grid.
Race Details and Broadcast Information
The fifth round of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship season in Detroit is a 100-minute sprint race on the 2.662-kilometer street circuit. The race is scheduled to begin on Saturday, June 1, at 3:40 PM local time (9:30 PM CEST). Fans outside North America can watch the entire event live and for free on IMSA.tv.
Driver Reactions Post-Qualifying
Matt Campbell (Porsche 963 #6): "Fifth place is a pretty solid qualifying result for us... hopefully we can gain the edge in tomorrow’s race with strategy. It’s my first time racing here... a very interesting but also challenging street circuit.
Nick Tandy (Porsche 963 #7): "Because of a change in weather the track temperature dropped. We struggled a lot to get the tyres up to temperature... Overall, the day has been good. The Porsche is running nicely, and the team has done a great job. We have high hopes for tomorrow."
Gianmaria Bruni (Porsche 963 #85): "We’ve been chasing the right setup since this morning... Now we’re compiling all the data for tomorrow’s race, and we’ll see where we stand."
Klaus Bachler (Porsche 911 GT3 R #77): "The qualifying didn’t really go perfectly for us. When the red flag came out, our tyres weren’t 100 per cent ready... We’re focusing on tomorrow and will do the best we can in the race."
Comments